all the best with your car lurch!

my friend was watching a show called "speed"?...and he says he saw the protege 2l take out 1st in the fwd n/a class in the rally of U.S.A......is this true???

cheers,
cris

 

That's correct Cris! We won the first round (Sno*Drift...a winter rally) in January. We took third in the second round in Tennessee in March. I will be skipping the next round this weekend in Oregon, so the Mitsubishi Lancer team will most likely get ahead of me, but I plan to return to the series for the 4th round in California in May.

The Sno*Drift ProRally will air on SPEED channel on April 18th. The Protege will be in the show, so check it out. Check local listings for time.

Thanks for the well wishes guys! If you're in CA, come see us at Hot Import Nights in San Mateo on April 27th! Or come see us in action at the Rim of the World rally in Palmdale the weekend after!

Proteges are even more fun driven sideways!

 

good stuff!! he told me the car was hammering (ozzie speak for going hard)

what other cars aside from lancers compete in your class?

 

Holy cow I just watched that and was so excited to see the pro win I cant believe that the driver of that beautiful peace of machine is on this forum! So many famious people. I never miss a "speed" Rally I even watch the reruns over and over learning everyones different style of driving. But for now I can only dream

 

Damn, is there a 're-run'?

 

I believe it ran today at 3pm.

It may run again...they've been showing the WRC stuff a lot!

 

i would love a VHS or VCD of any rally or touring races....help out the channel-less....

 

Lurch, congrats on all your success! Are you by any chance will be coming to the Maine Forest Rally this summer? I have signed up to help out during the rally. I almost made it last year, but had to cancel in the last minute. I really can't wait to go up this year.

About Mazda entering WRC. I am not sure what is Mazda's global marketing theme is going to be (323 in Japan, Protege in USA), though I would think that if Mazda were to enter, it would be under 323 name, and not Protege. But hey, anyway Mazda does it, is going to be awesome!

 

With the WRC looking at giving a stage to Japan for the 2003 or 4 season Mazda will start thinking more about it..

 

omg, this thread got ressurected innit.
anyway .. if anyone watched RallyXS last night ...
They were talking about how Ford is considering dropping one of their two top drivers to re-direct funds into development into the next generation of the Focus rally car .. due out in 2005.

Since the next-gen Protege and Focus will be reportedly based on the same platform, then this 2005 rally car will be fundamentally a Protege except for the outer looks and whatnot (unless they stick with Cosworth engines) .. Ford may not be as nice as Peugeot (and Citroen) about having a "family" company campaigning against them. Although it would be great to have an all-Mazda car in the WRC.

Of course, if Mazda has the funds to enter, perhaps they could contribute some cash to the development of the new car and it would be a Ford/Mazda joint effort.

 

didn't mazda have a 323 in the rally back in the 80's? I don't know my rally history very well. Rally racing is a great sport. Too bad I missed the RIM. Oh well, there is always next year... wish we get more rally in the bay area....

 

Sorry, So far it looks as if Rim of the World will not be part of the championship next year, so it will only be a club rally with no manufacturers racing.
Yes, Mazda had a 323 GTX in Group A rallying in the late 80's, but they didn't have great success and Mazda did not put enough money behind the program to develope the car enough to win.

If you really feel ambitious, the next rally is in the Seattle Area (Olympus) on Sept 7-8. I will be there

 

Thanks for the invite. but i know myself, I need more seat time. I am trying to do as much rallyx and off-road road rally event as possible. I didn't mean by participating in the RIM, just wanted to go watch it live. It's too bad they are not doing it next year. Well, I guess I could use that trip money and save up for rally school! BTW, for those in the bay area. There is going to be a rallyx/rally school in Nov. keep an eye out!

mopho, how long have you been doing rally? I just started this year. I hope by beginning of 2005 I would be good enough to enter club rally. Good luck on your next rally!

 

I have been photographing the sport for 5 years, and This was my first year navigating. you don't have to wait that long to do it unless it is finance that is holding you back. Club rally is generally for beginners and you can take a rally school although that can be expensive. I have photographed the Team O'Neil rally school for some magazine articles, so I got to take most of the course, it was great-learned a lot. I can't afford to run a car, that is why I navigate, which I feel is just as much fun as driving (maybe). Since it is a good way to learn and you don't have to pay for the damage to the car, navigating is a good way to start out.

 

Navigating is a great idea!! But I want to gain more skill in driving. I am still upgrading the nut behind the wheel . There are two main reasons for waiting for at least 2 years. First my skill, and second saving money (I am only 22) for a second car. I've saved enough for an old 95 Impreza, but need to save more money for the mod (which is more than the car itself) How did you get to be a nav? It sound like a good starting point to network. I've thought about going to Team O'Neil Rally school, but it's expensive and FAR!! I am from California.... More saving...